


Return to the Capital Wasteland

by Night_Fury_Guardian94



Category: Fallout 3, Fallout 4
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-16
Updated: 2018-06-01
Packaged: 2018-08-15 09:59:50
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,225
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8051959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Night_Fury_Guardian94/pseuds/Night_Fury_Guardian94
Summary: When MacCready and Nora explore a new abandoned Vault they have discovered, it is truly surprising when they find someone trapped in cryostasis. What's an even bigger surprise is that MacCready knows this Vault Dweller from his Little Lamplight days. But what is she doing in the Commonwealth?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> After I played Fallout 3 and 4, I tried to imagine how my Female Lone Wanderer, Ayla, would get along with Fallout 4 companion and former mayor of Little Lamplight, MacCready. And sure, I could've just had them run into each other in the Commonwealth, but I decided to have Ayla go into cryostasis. Why? Well, personally I think MacCready would be childish enough to make fun of her if she was younger than him. And Ayla, while a character with good karma, has quite a mouth on her. So even though, I'm still working out the plot and everything, I hope you all enjoy it!

MacCready wasn’t sure how to feel about the current situation he was dealing with.

As much as he absolutely hated going into anything underground other than the caves he grew up in (and even then, he had reservations), he’d let Nora drag him to investigate a newly discovered Vault. Why she’d chosen him to go with her, he had no idea. After all the things he’d told her about his childhood growing up near Vault 87, you’d think she would’ve put him last on her list of people to take vault exploring with her. There was no telling what kind of wacky and insane experiments that Vault-Tec had performed in any of their Vaults. Precisely why the man despised them.

Which is why he feared the worst when Nora called him, urgency with a hint of fear in her voice.

The young merc came running to his friend’s side, gun already at the ready for any hostile contact. Instead of being face to face with a Super Mutant or any other type of scientific disaster, he was greeted with an empty hall. Down the short hallway though were a few pod like containers, large enough to hold one person each. They were very familiar to him for some reason. It wasn’t until he stole a glance at Nora’s face that he realized that they looked identical to the cryopods in Vault 111, the vault that Nora had come from. He’d gone in there to help with the burial of her late husband Nate.

“Hey, Mac!” Nora suddenly called out. It startled MacCready; he didn’t realize that she’d strayed away. He found her a little further down the hallway, waving to him.

“Yeah?”

“There’s someone in one of these pods!”

MacCready rushed over to where Nora stood, turning his attention to the particular pod that Nora stood in front of. He slowly lowered his rifle as he took a closer look. Any view of the inside was obscured thanks to the ice frozen over the window. However, he could faintly make out the silhouette of a person inside. Nora suddenly handed him her gun.

“Hold that. I’m going to look for a working terminal. Maybe we can get them out of there.”

MacCready shook his head and stared at her in disapproval. “What are you, crazy? How do we know that the person in there isn’t some kind of serial killer from before the war? Or some kind of horribly mutated monster Vault-Tec created? For all we know, they could be feral, or a Super Mutant or--”

“Or perhaps they could be a pre-war citizen that was tricked by Vault-Tec into becoming a test subject?” Nora cut him off, sounding somewhat irritated. “Come on, MacCready. How would you feel if you had gotten stuck in there?”

“That’s got nothing to do with this.”

“Look, if they’re beyond help and go for the kill, just shoot them. I hate saying that, but you’re right. The possibility is high. But I can’t just leave them in here.”

‘Always has to help everyone and everything…. Sounds like someone else I know…’ MacCready thought as he gave an irritated and impatient grunt, a go ahead for Nora to free them. He quickly glanced over to the cryo pod in question. Seriously, what was Nora thinking? After everything they had encountered in the Commonwealth, she was willing to risk dying just to free someone she wasn’t even sure wouldn’t try to kill them. Hell…. Heck, they might not even be alive. But what if they carried some kind of contagion that could kill off what was left of humanity?

But then again, Nora could be right and the person was just an innocent, pre-war citizen that was lured into a Vault-Tec experiment. Like she had she and Nate had been when they reserved their place just minutes before the bombs fell, ironically enough. This case was just as likely. However, MacCready couldn’t help being uneased at the thought that this might be an ambush or just a bad mistake. Speaking of Vault-Tec, where were the inhabitants of this vault? Where were the scientists? They must have left at some point because there weren’t even signs of dead bodies here. No skeletons, no signs of life except for the person frozen before them. When Nora took MacCready into vault 111, it had been littered with the bones of the dead. Had the people that were here just left this one in cryostasis? 

“Mac! I did it!” Nora called as she ran back toward him. He looked over at her, nodding as he clutched his rifle a bit closer. If the person was dangerous, he wanted to have the upper hand before they could hurt him or Nora. The automated electronic message seemed to boom in the otherwise silent Vault. 

“Manual override initiated. Cryogenic stasis suspended.” 

Condensation formed on the outside of the pod within a couple of minutes, indicating that the pod was unfreezing its inhabitant. Nora said that it might not open until the process had been completed. What startled them however was the sound of coughing coming from within.

‘So…they’re still live, huh?’ MacCready thought. 

As much as it made him uncomfortable to do this, he handed his gun over to Nora. “I’m going to pull the lever. Let’s hurry this up.”

Nora took his gun for him, deciding to holster her own and arm herself with his. She gave a nod to MacCready when he turned back to look at her. Every instinct inside of him screamed in protest, to run and not open the pod. But he’d already agreed with Nora that they would free this person. With a hard swallow, he pulled the lever down. A huff of steam blew from behind and the door began to open.

The coughing from within the pod had gotten worse by this point. In addition to this, whoever was inside was banging around. Thuds came from inside, in the form of what MacCready assumed to be punches to the door. His gut flipped, worried that they might attack. The door opening seemed to take an eternity. He was on edge the entire time and he could tell Nora was as well. It must be hard for her to be even near cryopods after spending 200 years in one.

The person that was within the pod fell out when the door had given way enough, a result of the forced escape. MacCready could tell that it was a young woman, appearing even younger than him, seized in a violent fit of coughing as they gasped for air. Nora lowered the rifle and knelt down to help the girl as she grabbed her side as if a wound was there. It wasn’t long however before the now freed girl had passed out into Nora’s arms. 

“She’s got a wound in her side…” Nora told him. “Bleeding heavily. She might have radiation sickness, too.”

“Wouldn’t her wound have healed in cryostasis though?” MacCready asked.

“The freeze probably froze the exposed blood, forcing it to stop bleeding. But that didn’t help with any clotting it needs to do in order to heal.” Nora checked the girl’s pulse. “Damn, her blood pressure is too low. There’s signs of anemia…. Definitely radiation sickness. Get me some Rad-X and RadAway, Mac.”

His normal sarcastic mouth didn’t have a response for Nora, so he just searched the contents of the bag for the items she requested. He still wasn’t sure if this was a good idea or not, considering they didn’t know yet if the person might try to kill them. But he kept silent as Nora prepared an IV for the unconscious girl on the floor. She was about to roll her onto her back when she suddenly had a puzzled expression on her face. “That’s…odd.”   
MacCready wasn’t really paying too much intention. “What’s odd, Boss?”

“The number on her Vault suit doesn’t match the number of this Vault. She’s not from here.”

“What number?” Again, he absent-mindedly asked.

He had no idea what he had expected Nora to say. Vault-Tec had a lot of Vaults. A LOT. Any one of those other numbers could have been on that jumpsuit. Any one of them. EASILY. 

But he certainly did NOT expect the number that was there to be one he was familiar with. He’d thought he’d misheard her the first time so he asked again. “Wh-What number did you say?”

“I said 101. Her jumpsuit says 101, which is strange since this is Vault 113.” Nora gave a concerned frown, as she continued to work on the IV. “What’s wrong? Are you alright, Mac?”

“H-huh? Oh, yeah…come on, let’s get the IV in her…” MacCready could feel Nora’s curious eyes on his face, but he decided to just try and act calm like he had been. Of course, he was dying of curiosity on the inside. But the quicker he flipped the girl over for the IV, the quicker he might have an answer to those questions. But despite having prepared himself, he still felt the shock when he rolled her over and finally saw her face.

Long, dark hair tied in a bun, that familiar armored Vault suit she’d wear while visiting Little Lamplight, the ever present combat knife strapped onto a sheath at her side….it was definitely her. After all these years, she hadn’t aged a day from the last time he’d seen her. Making MacCready’s first question form in his head. How long had she been in cryostasis? Obviously within the past 10 years. It was just a surprising turn of events; the last news he’d gotten about her was back when he was still mayor of Little Lamplight. The entire Capital Wasteland practically wept at the news of her supposed death, and the children of Little Lamplight were no exception to this. They were all grateful for all she had done, and man, did she do a LOT. Saving settlers from Raiders, protecting the weak from Super Mutants and any other type of monster from the Wastes, rescuing slaves from Paradise Falls and other known slave traders, and hell, even giving supplies to people in need, even if that meant she did without. She did the unexpected; she was kindness in a cruel and bloodthirsty war-torn world. 

That very nature was what killed her, according to the rumors. Her father and her mother had been scientists that worked on the massive water purifier that still provided clean water to residents of the Capital Wasteland. It was said her father died protecting it from the Enclave, releasing a deadly amount of radiation into the activation chamber so the Enclave couldn’t use it as a weapon. That was something she made sure everyone she met knew, that her father had died trying to help people. She’d even told it to Bumble and Knock Knock, who in turn told all the children of Little Lamplight. From the way it sounded, her father’s dream became her own. And the day the Brotherhood won the fight against the Enclave was the day she walked into that irradiated chamber to activate the water purifier, an act she knew would cost her life. Yet she did it anyway.

MacCready was only twelve when he first met her, very distrustful of adults and even threatened to blow her brains out, aiming his rifle straight at her head. But she’d ended up being a great ally. She’d saved some of their own from Paradise Falls before he even asked. A usual trader and even brought back things for the kids. Information, chems, medicine…they asked, she gave. He never let her know it, but he actually grew a soft spot for her, accepting her as a kind of giant Little Lamplight resident. Even allowed her to trade Buffout and strange meat for the special cave fungus that grew in the caverns he’d once called home. That’s why he’d felt great sorrow when he’d first learned she had died. They all had.

“Mac, are you listening to me?” Nora’s voice interrupted the thoughts that raced through his head, causing him to snap his head to attention. She had already inserted the needle for the RadAway IV.

“What?”

“I said I need you to give her a stimpack and some Med-X. She’ll definitely need a doctor, so I’m going to go outside and send out a signal flare to any nearby Minutemen. Will you be okay in helping her?”

MacCready snorted. “You dragged me in here, knowing how I felt about Vaults. Kinda late to be asking me if I’ll be okay.”

Nora gave a slight smile at his sarcasm. “Alright. I’ll be right back then. Try bandaging her, too.”

“Aye, aye, General.” MacCready replied under his breath as she walked towards the entrance. His attention moved to the girl on the ground again as he dug through his bag. He pulled out a couple of stimpacks and some Med-X in addition to a clean shirt. After injecting the stimpacks into her arm, he began ripping the shirt up into strips, using them as bandages to cover her wound. She gave a moan when he accidentally applied to much pressure to the injury, despite still being unconscious.

“Sorry…” he whispered as he continued to work, even knowing she couldn’t hear him. He brought out the Med-X syringe and tapped it before injecting it into her arm. The anesthesia in that should help with any pain she might still feel. His mind kept drifting back to the past, to long forgotten memories of the Capital Wasteland and the tales of the person he was trying to help now. It was just…so strange.

MacCready never expected to cross paths with the Lone Wanderer in his lifetime again.

********

She’d never expected dying would be so…. bright.

Last thing she remembered was the searing pain of a bullet wound in her side along with the scratches that mole rats raked into her skin. And Fawkes. Her faithful companion had accidentally shoved her into some sort of pod that was nearby, the hatch closing behind her before she could move to get out. She’d banged and beaten the door with all her strength, screaming as Fawkes was suddenly attacked by people who she took to be Raiders. That is, until everything grew bright and cold.

Even now, she was cold. Like that time when she was little and had a raging fever, one that made everything she touched feel cold. Her father had even had to leave Jonas in the doctor’s office alone so he could nurse her back to health.

“Honey? Wake up, honey.”

‘Daddy?’ she thought to herself. His voice sounded so close, like he was right in front of her. ‘But you’ve been dead for months…Am I…dead?’

The brightness began to dim down, revealing the face of a younger version of her father. Face clean shaven, dark brown hair like hers, he looked like he had when she was little girl. Observing the room, she noticed that she was in their home back in Vault 101. What…what was going on…? Was she on some kind of weird drugs like what was in the air vents in Vault 108 or something?

Her father gently stroked her face, brushing her bangs back to feel her forehead. “You’re still very warm, sweetheart. Sorry to wake you. I needed to take your temperature. And you need to take your medicine.”

She quietly watched with wide eyes as her father replaced the cloth on her head with a fresh, cold one. He caught her odd gaze and chuckled. “What’s the matter, sweetheart?”

“I…. I…” Tears actually started to form and escape her eyes as she tried to speak. “I thought you were dead.”

‘Please oh please…. Let all the hell have been only a bad dream… Let the last year be a dream…’

“I’m right here, honey.” Her father continued to pat her head. “You just had a bad dream is all. But now… you need to rest now. The more you get, the quicker you’ll be back on your feet to teach Butch a lesson.”

Fear gripped her. “I don’t wanna go back to sleep. Not again.”

Her father leaned in and kissed her on her forehead. “It’ll be alright. Just go back to sleep.”

Everything was dark now. It seemed that no matter how hard she had tried to keep her eyes open, they would just get heavier and heavier until her father’s face vanished from view. Her side burned with a searing pain, right where she’d been shot, that only confirmed that she was unconscious. So…her father wasn’t still alive after all…the hell she’d been through searching for him and exploring the Wastes had been real. Was she…dead? No…if she was, her dad would be here. And her mom. Plus, she was in too much pain. But…where was she? She couldn’t be in that damn ice pod anymore; it wasn’t cold anymore.

Her eyes finally opened to reveal a bright source of light. It temporarily blinded her before her eyes slowly began to adjust to find the ruined, rough ceiling above her. Sitting up slowly, she winced at the sore spot on her side. She quickly grabbed to cover it, recalling the wound she hadn’t been able to treat. Looking down for an inspection of how much damage was done, she found it covered with a fresh and clean bandage. She had on nothing besides her underwear, causing her to panic a bit; her time in the Capital Wasteland had taught her to always, always, always wear some protection, even when sleeping. Her eyes flitted around the room to find her clothes, armor, and her bag of personal belongings, including her Pip-Boy, were sitting in a chair in the corner. She ran a hand through her undone hair, relieved to know she hadn’t been robbed. But it was quiet. Very quiet. Unnatural from her normal life. Heck, even in Vault 101 there was always some kind of noise, whether it was from a couple arguing to the simple hum of the reactors and generators.

She reached over to the nightstand beside the bed she was in to grab one of the hair ties lying there. Tying her hair back in her usual low bun, she began to ponder. Where was she? How much time had passed? How long had she been out? She and Fawkes had just made it into the Commonwealth before she got locked in that freezer box.

The door suddenly creaked open, causing her to flinch in surprise and pick up the closest thing she could find for self-defense. 

A young man appeared from behind the door, dressed in a khaki duster over a green shirt, dark green pants, and a green 8-point gunner’s cap on his head. He was talking to the young woman behind him, her dark hair in a pixie cut and a first aid kit in her arms. The injured girl couldn’t process what they were saying due to the adrenaline pumping in her ears, but suddenly the two people came to a halt in front of her. The young woman smiled warmly at her and opened her mouth to say something, but before she could the young man suddenly became seemingly horrified.

“Oh, shit!” he exclaimed, backing away towards the door. “I mean, crap! I mean, I-I’m sorry, miss!” 

Whirling around quickly, he ran head first into the door. He let out a swear of pain before he darted off. The girl had a puzzled expression on her face as she set the object she had in her hand down, realizing it wouldn’t have done her good anyway, it was a pillow. Besides, if these people wanted her dead, they would’ve killed her by now…right?

“Please excuse him.” The woman said in a…French accent? Yeah, she recognized the accent thanks to the French lessons on the Vault terminals. Even if it was extremely pointless to learn the language. “He did not mean to intrude. He has been helping me treat you, since he was the one who dug the bullet out of you. We’ve been able to stop any infection, and you will make a full recovery.”

She pulled an empty chair over to the bedside and set the first aid kit on the nightstand, digging through for some bandages. “The madam and young monsieur found you in cryogenic stasis a few days ago. Oh! Forgive me, madam. My name is Curie.”

“My name is Ayla. Where….am I?”

“You are now in our lovely little home of Sanctuary Hills! On the northern border of the Commonwealth.”

Ayla paused for a moment. “The Commonwealth? So…I am in the Commonwealth…. That’s good to hear.”

“Madam Ayla, is something the matter?” Curie asked. “Is your wound bothering you?”

“Huh? Oh…no, no…The last thing I remember…. Fawkes and I…Wait. How long ago did I get out?”

Curie tilted her head to the side. “Ah, two or three days ago. It’s reasonable you do not remember, you were unconscious up until now.”

Ayla nodded. “And…did those two that got me out…. Did they say anything about a Super Mutant wearing a Vault suit hanging around?”

“I am sorry, madam. I do not think they did.”

Ayla’s stomach did flips as she wondered just how long she’d been in cryostasis. She remembered her dad discussing it before. It worked in a way that… preserved people for years so they wouldn’t age. And it could last a long time. “Curie… what’s today’s date?”

“May 5, 2288, madam. Why do you ask?”

“2288?!” Ayla shouted at the top of her lungs. “B-but that would mean I’ve been trapped for…for…How’s that even possible?!”

“Please calm down!” Curie pleaded, trying to calm the girl down. “You might pull your stitches loose!”

But that was honestly the least of Ayla’s worries. She had pulled a plenty of stitches loose before and it never killed her before. Right now, she was more concerned about where Fawkes was. And Butch and Dogmeat and Wadsworth! She’d told them that she’d be back within a few months. What they must have thought when she never came back. She could at least be glad she had that home in Megaton for them all to share. So at least they were safe. Maybe they were still there. But what about Fawkes? He’d shoved her into that pod while trying to protect her from something or someone.

Despite Curie’s warnings and pleading for her to get some more rest because she was still weak, Ayla continued to put on her Vault 101 jumpsuit and slide her Pip-Boy on her wrist before grabbing her bag and walking out the door, only one thought echoing in her mind.

‘I’ve been asleep for ten years…. So where’d you go, Fawkes?’


	2. Welcome to the Commonwealth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> MacCready and the Lone Wanderer speak to each other for the first time in years. Ayla doesn’t recognize the young merc as the same Mayor MacCready from Little Lamplight. MacCready is reluctant to tell her who he really is for fear of freaking her out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, everyone. Sorry that it's been so long since I last updated! I changed jobs recently, and it gives me a ton of hours which is good and bad. Also, I had been typing the chapters on Microsoft Word, but my subscription had expired so I had a hard time finding ways to extract what I had already completed. I didn't want to try and start over because it wouldn't have been as good. But I have finally figured it out and finished! 
> 
> I shall now shut up so you can enjoy part 2!

The cool water that MacCready splashed on his face felt good, but did little to rid him of his flaming red cheeks. He felt so embarrassed, walking in on her while she was stripped down to nothing but underwear. No matter how many gruesome and terrible things he'd witnessed in his life, something about seeing another person even partially stripped made him a nervous wreck.

It had been a good three days since he and Nora had brought that Vault 101 girl to the settlement of Sanctuary, the attempted reconstruction of what had been Nora's home over 200 years ago. With the help of the arriving settlers and friends they had made along the way, Sanctuary had become quite impressive. They were currently in the process of building some walls around the place for protection. If they could build sturdy enough walls, they might become the most well-fortified settlement in the Commonwealth, with the exceptions of Diamond City and Good Neighbor. That's why they brought her there; relatively close, well-protected from enemies, and a decent amount of medical equipment. Not to mention a couple of doctors and Curie, who served as a kind of head doctor since she was the most qualified for the job.

The good news was that she would live. Curie and Nora both had said the major probably had been blood loss and radiation sickness. It had probably been a good thing she'd been stuck in that cryopod; she would've long been dead if she hadn't been.

"Monsieur MacCready!"

MacCready turned around to find Curie approaching him, out of breath and panicked. He quickly rose to his feet and walked to meet her. "What's the matter, Curie?"

"Oh Monsieur MacCready! Mademoiselle Ayla has disappeared!" Curie seemed to be in hysterics. She had a very caring nature, especially over any patients of hers. 

MacCready put a hand on her shoulder to try to get her to calm down. "Relax, Curie. Just take a deep breath and relax. Now... who's disappeared?"

"Mademoiselle Ayla. She just darted out the door--" MacCready cut her off.

"Ayla? Who's Ayla?"

"The mademoiselle that you and Madam Nora brought from that vault." 

Oh. That was her name? 

You might have figured that MacCready would've already known her name since she was the only outsider Little Lamplight would trade with, as well as the only mungo they accepted inside their home in the caves. But truth was, back then MacCready didn't give a shit about anyone outside the kids he was bound to protect. All he cared was that she was a mungo and she had better treat those kids right or he would blow her brains out. It was kind of strange for him to put a name to the face so many years later. Then again, a lot of strange things were happening lately, weren't they?

Curie had continued talking as he was thinking. "Her stitches could pull loose and she could start to bleed heavily again! And she's in no condition to be fighting the creatures out there! We must find her and have her rest more until she is better."

MacCready let out a sigh. "Curie, what if she doesn't want to? Are you gonna force her with drugs or something?"

"Then we must convince her to rest! I can not just allow one of my patients to walk off without at least treating their injuries as best as I can."

'You've already done the best you can, Curie.' MacCready thought to himself but did not vocalize. Curie would insist on tracking her down and persuading her to stay. He would be lying to himself if he didn't admit that he would like to at least talk to her again after all this time too. 

Curie had grown quiet but was looking expectantly at him. She already knew what he would do. Shit.

"Curie, you go on back to the clinic. I'll look for the girl." he finally replied, sighing in obvious irritation. 

"Oh thank you, Monsieur MacCready. It is such a great help for you to this. Now I must hurry. One of the children was bitten by a mole rat and needs to be treated. Thank you, Monsieur!"

MacCready watched as Curie hurried back to the clinic, letting the irritation set in fully. Dammit. Why was he so aggravated? He could understand why she'd probably took off, but at the same time, that lapse of judgment wasn't his problem. If she didn't want to stay, then he couldn't very well make her stay. She had to make that choice.

Speaking of that, he caught movement out of the corner of his eye and found someone making a straight line for the bridge out of Sanctuary. That was the good thing about this settlement; the wall may not be sturdy enough, but it was constructed enough to where there was only one way out. And that was the very gate she was heading for.

Well, finding her hadn't been a difficult task. Now all he had to do is get her back to the clinic.

“Hey!” he called out, following after her. “Curie said you shouldn’t be moving around yet!”

The fact that the young girl gave him no backward glance indicated that she didn’t hear him…or she was ignoring him. And given her personality, he had a feeling it was the latter.

‘Gonna be a little brat, huh?’

MacCready gave a sigh of annoyance as he followed after her. It was like they’d reversed roles; now she was the hard-headed smart ass little brat and he was the smart ass but protective grown up looking out for the her. And it kind of weirded him out. Cryostasis was some fucked up shit, he thought. She was just starting to cross the bridge out of Sanctuary Hills when he came within ten feet and called out again. “Hey, you in the Vault suit. Slow down for a second.”

To his surprise, she actually stopped and spun around to face him, a 10mm pistol aimed straight at him. He instinctively raised his hands up to show her he meant no harm; he knew from years ago she wasn’t the type to go around and kill non-hostiles. Though she had exceptions, like him. As he remembered the day they met, MacCready knew he had been so vicious and rude to her when she came to Little Lamplight. Even aimed his rifle to her head. It wasn’t until her inner child broke out, when she began to dish out insults like a three course meal at him, that he decided she wasn't too different from them and that she meant the kids of Little Lamplight no harm. And boy, were her insults at him funny. He could laugh at them right now, you know, if she wasn’t debating on whether to put a bullet in him or not. 

“Whoa…calm down there, kiddo.” He calmly said, trying to get her to relax. He felt weird calling her ‘kiddo’ but it had just kind of slipped out. Probably because he was possibly older than she was now.

“I’m not a kid. I’m nineteen.” She said, just as calm as him though there was a hint of panic in her tone. Of course she’d be in shock. She'd probably never even been to the Commonwealth. 

“Pfft. Yeah. Nineteen. You’re barely out of the cradle.”

“You’re one to talk, mungo.”

MacCready tried to hard not to show his surprise at the word ‘mungo’ because it wasn’t expected. Who would’ve thought she would’ve picked up on that term from Little Lamplight. Then again, she was a frequent visitor there back then, trading Buffout and strange meat for cave fungus, the special product of Little Lamplight. Still, he hadn’t heard that term in so long. Not since he’d left at the age of sixteen. MacCready forced himself to stop pondering about the past and return to the present. She was still glaring at him, gun aimed at his face. Now was definitely not the time to freak her out.

“Relax, sweetheart. I’m not gonna bite you. My friend and I pulled you out of that ice box.”

That seemed to get her attention, though he could see she despised the term ‘sweetheart’. Her gun lowered its aim a little though. “How’d you find me and get me out? You better not be some sort of fanatic trying to revive the Enclave.”

The Enclave? Oh, right. Those assholes that tried to take over the Capital Wasteland.

“Sorry to disappoint but no. My friend and I were exploring Vault 113 since she’d never been in that one yet. Found you in an ice box and she hacked into Vault-Tec’s computer in order to release you. It’s kinda her thing.”

Her face slowly lost its hostility, seemingly believing him. But their was still distrust. Without taking her eyes off of him, she slowly placed the pistol back in its holster. “I see….”

“Welcome to our land of milk and honey, the promised land.” MacCready replied sarcastically. 

“Hey, you should be glad. Don’t think it’s terrible here. You ought to see where I’m from.” She was frowning at him, but at least she wasn’t ready to kill him. Yet.

“Hmmm, Vault 101, huh?” He tried to sound indifferent, so as not to give himself away yet. “Yeah, the Capital Wasteland is pretty bad. D.C. was practically a war zone from what I heard.”

“How did you know I'm from Vault 101?!" She immediately demanded, hand twitching for the gun but never actually yanking out of the holster.

"I hate to tell you this, but that jumpsuit of yours is a dead giveaway." MacCready answered in the most sarcastic tone he could manage. "Not exactly inconspicuous."

He could see the tension leave her and embarrassment set in. "Oh...yeah. I kinda forgot I was wearing it...Sorry..."

"No problem..."

An awkward silence arose between the two, neither of them knowing exactly what to say to the other one. Of course it would be awkward. As far as she knew, she'd nevermet him before in her life. And...well, he didn't really actually know her, just who she was. Kind of. 

She broke the silence first. "Have you been there before or something?”

"Huh?"

"Have you been to the Capital Wasteland or something?" she repeated. "I mean, Vault-Tec built over 100 vaults. You must've been up there to know where that Vault is. Unless you are just fascinated by memorizing where all the Vaults are located."

He scoffed. "Please. I'm a nerd, but I'm not into that shit."

"Are you gonna answer me or not?"

“I was born there, actually. Away from the big settlements though. Super mutants were a huge problem, but I could take them on after I started handling a rifle when I was eleven.” He felt the need to add that in, just to brag a little on how well he could handle a weapon. Maybe it was to impress her, but she just snorted with an amused look on her face. He had actually expected that reaction.

“Please, mungo. My dad gave me my first BB gun when I was ten and I used to rid my home of the radroaches that crawled through the Vault. Since then, I’ve taken on Super mutants, centaurs, raiders, mirelurks. You name it, I’ve killed it. Even took down a couple of deathclaws when I went to explore Vault 92.”

“Well, well. I guess the little princess is tougher than she looks.” MacCready couldn’t deny it; picking on her was the most fun he had had in years. It was weird, considering that she was technically seven years older and the widely accepted savior of the Capital Wasteland… but it was still enjoyable. He could see her face turn red with irritation while her cheeks puffed up and her hands turned into fists. She took a deep breath.

“You know what? If I wanted to listen to an asshole, I’d go ahead and fart.”

That did it for MacCready. He cackled hard and loudly at her words. After being in a freezer for a decade, the Lone Wanderer still could dish out all the smart ass comebacks. Of course, to her it probably didn’t feel like 10 years. Nora didn’t realize that 210 years had passed when she came out of cryostasis. He decided to take the insults on his part down a notch, to try and show he was friendly. “Anyway, welcome to the Commonwealth.”

“Thanks. So… you’ve heard of Vault 101, huh?”

“Of course. Everyone in the Wasteland knows it’s the Vault that never opens. Well, that is until it did ten years ago. You can tell that they don’t like outsiders…but at least they open their doors for trading now.”

“So they finally opened it for good, huh?” The girl murmured to herself. 

MacCready waited for her to say more, but she remained quiet. Like she was lost in thought. The silence felt awkward to him, especially since she’d just spaced out on him. He kept trying to figure out what to say when he once again noticed the number on her Vault suit. “You’re from 101 then, right? You didn't steal the jumpsuit off a dead vault dweller then?”

She snapped out of her trance, looking at him questioning until his words processed. “Oh. Yeah, I was born… No, I grew up there. Lived there for as long as I could remember.”

“Must’ve been a comfortable life, growing up in a vault." he commented, more for the sake of conversation than anything else.

"It was more comfortable than the Wasteland, if that's what you mean..."

"Why’d you leave?”

The question was harmless enough, but something about instantly changed her features. He wondered if the story that had been told across the Capital Wasteland was true and she did leave in search of her father. Of course, there was room to doubt, considering that the stories and legend had even forgotten her gender. Judging by her reaction though, she reacted more like...more like she was forced to leave.

“I…” she began, struggling for words it seemed. “I left because… my father left. And I knew he needed my help. That's all there is...was to it.”

Obviously she wasn’t going to say anymore on that topic. MacCready could tell that that wasn’t a straight up lie, but there was more to it than she was willing to tell him. And he knew that was the only answer he was going to get for right now so he didn’t push it.

“I see. But anyway, you seriously need more rest, kid. You were shot up pretty bad after all, and the bullet had to be dug out. Nora put stitches to keep the hole closed.” 

“I’m fine… I have to go-“

“Not right now you don’t. I can tell it’s taking most of your strength to just stand. Rest is what you have to do.”

Her cheeks instantly puffed up, anger in her eyes. “No, I have to get back D.C. as soon as possible.”

MacCready put his hands on his hips and stared straight into her defiant brown eyes. He gave a smart ass grin as he responded. “I know that you’ve figured out that you’ve been asleep for ten years. Curie told me that she told you. Why don't you just stay here until you're better. That way you won't worry her hard work by dying out there. Whatever you have to go back for can wait. After ten years, what’s another few days gonna change?”

He could see the desire to just punch him in the face in her eyes. The attempts at trying to further support her argument, but he knew he had her now. And he knew she knew it too. The only thing she could really do now was just flat out run away, and with her injury she wouldn’t be getting far at all.

Finally, she gave a huff of defeat. “Fuck you.”

“Don’t I get a kiss first, sweetheart? Anyway, you’re a little too young for me.” 

She gave a huff of obvious annoyance at his remark. Despite her obvious aggravation at him, he could see one of hands slowly inch to where her wound was. For the first time, he noticed her face, drained of color and distorted with pain. She literally looked like she might faint at any moment.

“And you would be much more likeable if it wasn’t for that hole in your face that noise comes out of.” she muttered. She did turn around and begin walking back into the settlement. MacCready followed after her, making sure she didn't try anything stupid like running again.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that." MacCready commented, smugness in his voice. "Anyway, you got a name or something?"

She turned to face him, an annoyed glare on her face. "Yeah. What's it to you?"

He shrugged, the cocky grin still on his face. "I mean, I can keep on calling you 'princess' or 'sweetheart' in the sarcastic way I've been--"

"Ayla." She mumbled.

"What's that?"

"I said my name is Ayla. You can stop with the stupid attempts at insulting nicknames now." 

"Ayla... That's a strange name." MacCready replied, honestly not trying to insult her. It just wasn't a name you heard everywhere these days. Not that there were many people, but there was enough to be able to say 'Ayla' was indeed a different name from the general populace. Maybe Vault kids had weird names though.

"Oh yeah? What's yours then?" 

He hesitated a moment. Should he flat out tell her who exactly he is? She's had a decent dose of shock already. Should he really just add in a 'Hi, you remember that mayor of Little Lamplight you used to trade with? Well, surprise! That's actually me.'? That would probably just freak her out more. This must have been what Nora was like when she found out 210 years had passed while she was in cryostasis.

After just a few moments of thought, he finally told her. "Robert."

This seemed good enough for now. As big of a jerk as he could be, he didn't think she deserved another panic attack today. Let her just get used to the idea that ten years have passed.

"Robert..." she repeated, seeming to test the name out. "Huh."

"What is it?" he questioned.

"Does that mean I can call you 'Bob' or 'Bobby'?"

"....the hell it does."

She actually laughed at his reply, although it did seem to cause some discomfort in her abdomen, judging by the wince she made. He was caught off guard that she gave him a polite smile. It was stiff, but it was a smile. "Okay, I won't. Well...nice to meet you, Robert."

He forced himself to return the smile, although he was never much of one to smile for no reason. But since she was being polite, he could at least try to do the same.

"Yeah. Nice to meet you too...Ayla."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Again, I am very sorry it has taken me so long to finish. 
> 
> If you would like for me to continue, just let me know! I'm not sure how well this story is so far. I hope it is a decent one.
> 
> See you next time!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ayla prepares to get ready to leave Sanctuary and return to her old home. Meanwhile, Nora tries to convince MacCready to go with her and get his son.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, everyone. I kinda started this story without any sort of plan in mind (as I always do tbh) But I do want to continue this, so thanks for all the positive reviews and kudos from before.
> 
> It's been a loooooonggg time since I updated last, so I still don't know where I'm going with this. Hopefully, this chapter will be decent. 
> 
> Special thanks to Bethesda for reinspiring me to wrote my Fallout fic by releasing a teaser trailer for Fallout 76. 
> 
> Anyway, enjoy!

The next couple of weeks Ayla spent with these people in the place called Sanctuary Hills were probably the most peaceful ones she had had in a long time. Any sort of safety and relative comfort had been tossed out the window since she left Vault 101, tracking down her father who had gone AWOL back then. Of course, she wasn't given much choice either, seeing how Overseer Almodovar had sent security after her.

Yep. That was when her life had been thrust into hell. Still, she couldn't find it in herself to blame her father for any of that. He thought he was doing right by leaving her behind in that vault

It wasn't as bad here in the Commonwealth. Well, so far anyway. Having a group of settlers actually give a damn about you. The person who she thought the leader of this settlement, Nora, checked in on her at least once a day. The lady named Curie was always asking about how she felt and scolded her about pushing herself. There were a few others that were kind enough to her, helping her get adjusted to staying there.

It was a lot well fortified than any settlement she had seen in the Capital Wasteland. Well, save for Megaton and Little Lamplight since they had walls of scrap metal and rocky caverns respectively. Still, the people here had obviously chopped down some of the tall trees and built wall around their homes. There were quite a few repaired turrets scattered everywhere as well, positioned in strategic locations throughout the settlement. Someone at least knew what they were doing in terms of defense.

She also noticed a few taller watch posts, perfect for being able to snipe hostile from a distance. It was from one of these posts that she saw the man who had introduced himself as Robert climb down, his rifle slung across his back. Something about him....really bothered Ayla.

He looked...kind of familiar. No, more like his way of speech and his mannerisms seemed familiar. Well, he had said that he had been born in the Capital Wasteland, so maybe she had run into him before? If so, he had to have been just a kid back then. She had met lots of orphaned kids everywhere she had went there. That was probably what it was. She had seen him somewhere there, but obviously they didn't meet given he didn't seem to know who she was when they talked a few days ago. 

Ayla shook her head to snap out of her deep pondering. It didn't make any difference if they had met or not. All that mattered now was that she find Falkes and that they returned to D.C. as soon as possible.

She'd have to get some supplies ready soon. It was going to be a long, long, long journey.

Ayla decided to go over to where she was told Nora resided. Noticing that there was still a door on the dilapidated house, she chose to be polite and gave a few loud knocks on it. 

"Hello?" a male voice called from behind the door.

Ayla was a bit caught off guard, but she kept her voice steady. "I was looking for Nora. Is she here?"

"Umm, I'm afraid not. I think she said that she was going down to the Red Rocket Station just across the bridge."

"Okay, thank you." 

Ayla was quite surprised to hear a man's voice in Nora's home. As far as she knew, Nora wasn't seeing anyone or married or anything. It really wasn't any of her business, but Ayla thought that she would at least let Nora know.

The Red Rocket Station was right on the other side of the bridge so it didn't take Ayla long to walk to it. A German Shepard was lying down by the open garage door, seemingly fast asleep. But his head quickly shot up at the sound of someone approaching. He remained silent though, until he saw the young Vault Dweller amble into his view. Ayla smiled at how his tail slowly began to wag in response. Dogmeat was a sociable canine, when he knew you weren't hostile. During her couple weeks in Sanctuary, Ayla had often given him some of her food and some loving scratches behind the ears for him. It reminded her of her own faithful companion, who coincidentally was also named Dogmeat. 

"Hey, boy. How you doing?" Ayla called out to him, reaching a hand out.

He always appeared as if he was smiling, as he did now as he merely sat there as she began to pet his head. She quickly moved her hand to scratch behind the ears, a favorite scratching spot of his.

As she pet the dog on guard duty, Ayla could hear metal clanking and the shuffling of footsteps. She stood up straight and walked into the garage where she found Nora along with the man named Sturges she thought tinkering at a power armor station.

"I think if I attach this here, it'll help greatly with damage resistance." the man muttered as he seemed to be screwing something onto a power armor suit. 

"Yeah, that should help definitely." Nora replied as she oiled the joints of an arm. "Oh, hey there, Ayla! Feeling any better?"

"Umm...yeah." Ayla answered, feeling a little awkward. "Lots better. Which is why I wanted to talk to you."

"Oh? Something wrong?"

"No, no...everything's fine." the younger woman reassured. "It's just...I wanted to thank you for all the help. And I wanted to let you know that I'm going to back to the Capital Wasteland. Just trying to be courteous so that no one thinks I got kidnapped."

Nora remained silent for a moment. "Are you sure you're ready to go? That's a long and dangerous trip. Why don't rest a bit more and wait to see if anyone else is--"

Ayla held up her hand to halt her words. "Thanks, but it's important I go home. I've been...asleep for 10 years...I have to go check on my friends."

Nora pursed her lips, seeming to want to argue the issue more. In her eyes, this girl was barely more than a teenager. But in private conversations with MacCready learned that Ayla wasn't a mere ignorant child. She had heard most of what the entire Wasteland had to say about her. How she had been practically kicked out of her vault, the struggle to find her father in the wastes....only to lose him to it. They were definitely experiences that forced a person to grow up. She could definitely handle herself. 

Besides, it didn't look like Ayla was going to listen to anything she said anyway. 

A sigh escaped Nora's lips as she finally replied. "Alright then, I guess I can't stop you."

Ayla gave a small smirk. "Nope. My own dad couldn't stop me if I wanted something."

Nora giggled at the remark. "Well, if you'll do me just one favor though?"

"What's that?"

"Trade in your weapons for some better ones. And stock up on ammo. I'll make sure to get you a good discount on the ones you buy. I just don't want to let you go out unprepared. I hear from the Brotherhood that the Capital Wasteland is a lot worse than it is here."

The young girl nodded. "Alright, I will. Better do some maintenance, too. You're abnormally kind for a wastelander, Nora."

"Oh, I guess that's just my Pre-War tendencies coming out." 

Ayla raised an eyebrow, tilting her head in curiosity. "Pre-War?"

"Yeah." Nora gave a small laugh. "See, I was born before the War. When the bombs dropped, my family and I ran to wake shelter in Vault 111. The one on the hill behind Sanctuary."

Ayla's eyes widened a bit. "So you're...over 200 years old....?"

"Yeah, that's right. They had us cryogenically frozen in these pod like containers."

"Leave it to Vault-Tec and their crazy and unethical human experimentation..." Ayla mumbled.

"I know..." Nora replied. "Anyway, did they do anything in your vault like that?"

"No. Ours was more of a social experiment. And it wasn't too extreme as far as I know. Basically, they gave the Overseer complete control. And from the time I was born, they brainwashed us kids into thinking that the vault doors were never opened and never would be opened. 'We live in the Vault, we die in the Vault!' All that garbage and what not."

Ayla suddenly remembered about the man's voice inside Nora's house. "Wait, I almost forgot to tell you. I went by your house first. When I knocked, I heard a man's voice on the other side."

"That must've been Preston." Sturges suddenly interjected. 

"Oh, yeah. It probably was." Nora seemingly recalled before she explained. "He usually takes a nap this time of the day on a spare mattress I have set up. He stays up all night on guard duty so he hasn't had much time to actually set up a place of his own."

"Oh okay." Ayla replied. "I didn't see his face because he didn't open the door. But I just wanted you to know. Anyway, I'm aiming to leave in a couple of days so I better start getting my supplies together now. I'll see you later, Nora.”

The younger woman quickly hurried off back into Sanctuary to prepare for her upcoming odyssey.

.....................

 

MacCready yawned as he climbed down the ladder from where he had taken post for guard duty. That afternoon had proven rather uneventful in terms of an attack. That wasn't a bad thing, but still MacCready wouldn't have minded some target practice to make the shift seem shorter. 

He notice the vault 101 kid scurrying about, carrying different guns around. She had been all over the small market in Sanctuary since yesterday evening. Trading some guns in for new ones, repairing others. Buying tons of ammunition and food. Rummaging through that dirty duffle bag to dig through the various junk she had collected, seeing what could be sold or,pawned off. Geez, she was as bad as Nora about picking up useless crap. 

He turned away, not really interested. It didn't matter if he was anyway; it wasn't any of his business. 

MacCready went to open the door of the tiny shack he had thrown together for the sake of having a roof over his head. He plopped down to sit on the edge of the bed. The place was cramped, only having room mainly for a bed, kitchen stove, closet, and a place to clean oneself up at. But it was a home to MacCready at the moment. And hopefully he could fix it up soon so there would be room for Duncan, too.

Duncan. How he missed his little boy. It had been so long since he had seen him, though hopefully he was doing better than the last time. His son had caught some sort of disease, one he had never heard of or could find any information on back when they lived together in D.C. Fever, boils all over his body, too weak to even stand. He hoped the antidote Nora had helped him get had made it to Duncan in time. 

MacCready had eagerly been waiting for a time when he could travel back to the Capital Wasteland and bring his son home. But there were these dark, horrible thoughts that kept weighing on his mind. The trip would be long and definitely perilous given the nasty creatures that the Wasteland had to offer. What if he couldn't protect his son out there?

Like he had failed to protect…

A knock on the door snapped MacCready away from his depressing thoughts. He went over to the door, opening it to reveal Nora standing there.

“Hey, Mac.” she said.

“Hey, Nora.” MacCready greeted. “Is something the matter?”

“I just wanted to talk to you about something. Come down to the creek bank with me?”

“Sure…” MacCready replied, shutting the door behind him as he walked out to follow her. 

Once they had made it to the side of the little creek that ran in front of Sanctuary’s entrance, MacCready finally spoke. “So what did you want to talk to me about, Nora?”

“Well...it's about...our new friend.”

“Oh.” He wasn't sure what else to say. What did Nora have to talk about regarding her? Other than a few brief encounters, MacCready didn't really talk to Ayla that much over the last couple of weeks. “What about her?”

“She's going to be leaving for the Capital Wasteland in the next couple of days…”

"Huh?" MacCready asked as he turned to face Nora.

"Yeah..." She continued. "I tried to persuade her to wait until someone could go with her... Or at least until she was back at full capacity. But she said that she couldn't and wouldn't wait..."

"Okay...so why are you coming to me with this?" MacCready asked directly, not enjoying her beating around the bush.

"Well...you were planning to go back and bring Duncan back here..."

'So that's what she had in mind.'

“So why don't you--”

"No."

"But I haven't even said anything yet, Mac!"

"Doesn't matter. I'm not ready to go and get Duncan yet.” 

“Come on, why not?” Nora interrogated. “I know you miss him, so here's your chance to at least go see him again!” 

MacCready scratched his head in frustration. “Nora, I'm worried…”

The woman tilted her head in confusion. “About what?”

“What if I can't get him here safely? What if I lose him, too? I’ve been debating going to get him but I keep thinking about what could happen. The Capital Wasteland is more of a shithole than here. And who knows what's just lying in wait for travelers out there.”

“Yeah...I understand.” Nora quietly replied.

“Oh shi- I mean, oh crap...Uhhh, sorry about that…” MacCready stuttered, suddenly remembering that Nora was a parent, too. She had it a lot worse than he did. He at least knew where his son was at. Nora had her baby stolen from her, at the same time her husband had been murdered right in front of her. All while she had been powerless to stop it.

Yeah...He had it easy compared to her.

“It's fine, MacCready.” his friend calmly replied. “I'll find my son. And I'll find the damn son of a bitch that took him and my husband from me. He won't be able to hide for much longer.”

Shit. That dumbass was living on borrowed time.

“I'll help you take him down when the time come.” MacCready stated. “Not that you actually need my help though.”

Nora laughed at his remark. “Anyway, I can't make you go with her. I just thought it might be nice for the two of you. Having someone else there to watch your back.”

The merc shrugged. “It’s not a bad idea, actually. I'm just not sure if I should...risk bringing Duncan back. After all, it would probably just me protecting him coming back. She probably wants to go back and stay.”

“I didn't consider that...hey, did you know her back when you lived there at all?”

MacCready gave a surprised look. “Well...kinda. It was back when I was mayor of Little Lamplight, I met her. I was still just a kid though.”

“Wait, didn't you say that when you guys turned sixteen, you had to leave?”

“Yeah, that's right. It was just an unspoken rule of ours…”

“But she would have been nineteen...so how did--”

“If you'll let me finish, I'll tell you.” MacCready replied. Nora pretended to zip her lips shut before MacCready continued his tale. “Anyway...One day I was making patrols around the caves and I happened to be by the front gate when I hear footsteps running toward us. I take position by the gate, ready to ambush whatever son of a bitch was coming. We also had a couple of our kids kidnapped by slavers recently, so I was pissed. When she got near, I told her to stop right there, or I would blow her head off. She asked to come in though. Said she wanted into Vault 87.”

“You be mentioned that place before…”

“Yeah, full of deadly radiation and super mutants. I told her she didn't want to go there and that the only way in was through Little Lamplight….Then I told her she wasn't getting in. Then…”

“Then…?”

“She told me that my face looked like her butt.”

The woman gave a soft giggle at his statement. “Wow. So how you'd respond to that?”

MacCready felt a light blush threaten to color his face. “I...I don't really...remember…”

“Awww, that's too bad.” 

MacCready lied. He knew what he had said to her. He was just too embarrassed to repeat it to Nora. 

“But she did us a couple of favors once we let her in. She helped one of our kids that was leaving get safely to Big Town. Saved those kids from the slavers. Traded with us frequently. And with shit we could actually use, too. She was a kid like us in my book. Just...bigger than the rest of us.”

Nora gave a smile. “Well, it sounds like Ayla is really nice. But how come she doesn't seem to recognize you?”

MacCready sighed. “Gosh, you can be so nosy, you know that? Back then, I had a round baby face and stayed under my helmet and head scarf. Plus, I was such a tool. Maybe that's why, I don't know…”

MacCready kicked a nearby rock into the flowing stream before him, studying the ripples as it disappeared below into the murky water. Truth be told, he was somewhat glad she didn't remember him. That meant she didn't know that he was that pain in the ass mayor from Lamplight. He was just some random wasteland stranger...he was just Robert now.

MacCready chatted with Nora for a bit more before they both went their separate ways. He decided to go straight back to his small shack to think things over. He really did want to go back and bring his son back. He missed his little buddy so much. But...he wasn't sure if he could protect him all by himself out there. 

When he was back inside his house, MacCready fell onto his mattress again. Geez, Nora had given him too much to ponder about for one night. He wasn't so sure at all about this. Despite his confidence in his abilities, he was honestly terrified of losing Duncan. MacCready had never known his actual parents, having been raised in a children-only society. But he and his wife had made the decision to be there for their child. Lucy had loved her son so much, from the moment she had first realized the possibility of her being pregnant. 

Lucy and Duncan. That was all the family he had been given in this world. Lucy was...gone now. So Duncan was really all the man had left. 

MacCready reached over to pull the blanket over his body. Damn, he wished Lucy was still here. But he still had Duncan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for now! I'll try to update sooner! Thanks for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it! It's my first Fallout fanfiction, but I hope to make more!


End file.
